Teddy Talk: Creating, Collecting, Connecting

Awwww thanks Gail, Daphne, Louise and Jodi.  It is truly a huge honour to be on the cover of TB&F and yes Gail I do remember us being talked into doing our first show.  Daphne we will have to get a picture of you as well I want to be able to tell everyone that I do know  the famous Mimzy Maker  :dance: .

Jodi we are still little boys at heart, anyone who has met us will tell you we are still very child like   :redface: . 

I remember when we did Schaumburg for the first time two yrs ago,  we walked in the room to set up our table and both of us were almost sick to our stomaches and wondering what we were doing there.  Then to top it all off we had Michelle Lamb set up her table just around the corner from us, now that was intimidating but she's a super nice person but we still felt sick  .

big hugs

Shane

Hmmmm  I only know of one incident Karen  , you'll have to fill me in on the other one.  I know of the one when you made everyone run down the hallway after the awards ceremony heehee.

Tami I agree we should have a big one in Schaumburg in the Fall, we will be going to that one as well.

big hugs

Shane

OH Amy I agree we should do one in Schaumburg how cool would that be, lots of TT's go to Schaumburg and even if it's just you and us and Mindy we'll have a fantastic time  oh  wait Laura Lynn lives nearby so we could kidnap her and we could all go bar hoping in her new mecedes (she can be the designated driver)

Hmmmm we will have to think about the LV one though,  have to count our pennies and see if we can manage that one.  It's Steve's big 40 in July and he wants to go to Vegas, so maybe we just do it a couple of weeks early,  hmmm now if we get Karen Lyons involved with this party then we might get into trouble (Karen has a habit of getting into trouble in Las Vegas    but I won't say anymore    )

big hugs

Shane

Oh Nancy I like her just the way she is, nice and crisp and clean.  I think I agree that you could do another one in a more primitive look but this one is perfect just the way she is.  (ok this is saying alot for me as I'm not much of a doll person but she is adorable )   

hugs

Shane

I have to agree with Daphne on this one Gaby.  We did a lot of shows one yr and some were really good and other just stunk, you do get to know which ones are better and those are the ones to stick with.  Again it does depend on the collectors as well, sometimes collectors just don't show up.  If it's a really nice spring day you will get some die hard collectors but a lot of people want to be out in the sunshine and not inside.  Don't be discouraged at least you had some interest in your bears and gave out business cards, so you never know you may hear from people who want to order something from you.  We have had that happen a lot to us, and sometimes people who looked once will buy the second time they see you.

Don't get down, I enjoy getting to meet other artist and talking with them that's part of the fun in doing shows.

big hugs

Shane

Thanks so much Carolyn I'm glad you like the bear and bunny, the bunny we made exclusively for the Toy Shoppe in Virginia along with some of our other funky little bears.  It"s true though I really did think Steve was gonna pee  :redface:  he was so excited.

Amy thanks as well you are a sweetie and looking forward to seeing you again.

big hugs

Shane

E BearZ just had an airbrushing course that started on the 26th of March , I'm sure they will be running another one in the near future.  You may check out some of the art supply stores in Montreal, they sometimes hold a one day beginner class and most times you use their equipment so you don't even need an airbrush.  It's a great way to try one out and see if you like it or not. 

Check out E-BearZ University and the list of classes there, I love taking classes you will always learn something.  here's the web site   http://www.kranbearys.com/EbearZ/index.htm

big hugs

Shane

Ok  I know Mindy has the same avatar but I couldn't resist changing mine 

hugs

Shane

Yes that's our guys Karen, you were very observant  .  Steve and I are so excited we can hardly contain ourselves.  It's been difficult not to say anything as I wanted it to be a surprise until the magazine came out, (even our closest friends don't know that we made the cover, they know there was an article about us but that was it).  I never thought it would happen to us but it did and it's like a dream come true.  I'm really looking forward to seeing the magazine and the article , it was so much fun to do and Mindy is the best to work with and we have enjoyed the experience sooo much. 

We actually just saw the cover last night for the first time and we looked like idiots with stupid grins on our faces and giggling when we saw it.  Steve has been telling Mindy that he's so excited he's gonna pee his pants  :crackup:  :crackup:  :crackup: (it's possible that he might when he see's the magazine in person  )

Thanks everyone for all your congrats it's really appreciated.  I am posting a pic of the cover for you all to see.

big hugs 

Shane

Hmmmm I have been thinking about this more and more Shelli and I think I need to revise my previous statement    ,  I believe that you could easily sell them for closer to a $100.00, I think $50.00 is going to be far to low.  I have done some searching around online and I think at $100.00 you would be pretty much inline with other artist work for similiar dolls.  If you don't sell them at NC trust me there are enough people on TT who would buy them that's for sure.   Pricing can sometimes be difficult and it's difficult to even price your own work and I do believe that a lot of artist do undersell themselves (other's are way out of line with their prices) so it's a tough call, but  I think closer to 100.00 would be best.

big hugs

Shane

Well it would be nice to be able to make a living from making teddy bears.  I think it takes a lot of good marketing skills and budgeting and forecasting.  In our case we are hoping that Steve will be able to quite his job  and concentrate on bears full time within the next yr.  I would be the lucky one who would get to continue to work full time since we both are covered by my  benefits   (dental , medical, plus a pension) so it would make sense for me to continue working (I"d prefer to stay home and play with teddy bears all day)  :crackup: . 

I believe Karen Lyons does it full time ( I remember her saying that in another thread but I could be wrong)  Now if I win the lotto you can betcha I'd be quitting my job in a heartbeat    .

big hugs

Shane

     I was thinking the same thing Aeri, I think it's adorable and especially when you see the back of it and see that little bear butt    (maybe you should needle felt in a little bear butt crack)  :crackup:  :crackup:  :crackup:   But seriously it is adorable and I love the cupcake idea very sweet.

big hugs

Shane

Wow that's a good question,  we work on several bears at one time. Currently our coffee table is full of heads waiting for noses (eyes are in and ears are on and faces trimmed).  Their bodies are on the kitchen table arms and legs stuffed and toes pulled and seams sewn up, just need to be attached to the body  .  I don't think we have ever timed ourselves , but with a real fur bear I would say anywhere from 15-30 hours.  Mohair bears take less time so maybe 10-15.  I tend to hand sew most of the bears so that adds a few hours on to it, but if we machine sew then they go up in no time.  It's the scissor sculpting and razor trimming and thread sculpting that takes so much time,  the face to me is the most important part of the bear (not that I don't care about the rest of the bear    but people are usually attracted to a bears face first so we spend the most time on it).

It's great seeing everyone's response ,  it also depends on the particular bear and with us there are two of us working on a bear so that makes it faster as well.

big hugs

Shane

You know Shelli I think you will sell out of them.  They are wonderful and quirky and if you priced them at $48.00 or $50.00  (I think $48.00 as a number is more appealing to people) you will sell out of them.  We had this discussion awhile ago on another thread about having something on your table that was affordable to everyone, not everyone can afford an artist teddy bear.  These little imps will fill a void and I can gurantee you that people will snap them up because the price is good and people are going to love them.

Hugs

Shane

There is a flexible Fimo or polymer clay that you can get.  I think we bought some at one point as we were making wine glass charms and the clay was bendable after it was baked, that way we could spread open the charm a bit to put on around the stem of the wine glass.  You should be able to get it at most craft stores, I think we bought ours in Michaels.

big hugs

Shane

All I can say is WOW, that is so amazing I never would have thought of doing that.  Fantastic work Aeri and keep up the great work.  Look forward to seeing what else you come up with.

big hugs

Shane

Hmmmm  well let me see  hmmm tough question Daphne    , actually you don't sound like that I know it's just nerves ( you didn't sound awlful by any means you just sounded different)  Could of been worse you could of sounded like you had inhaled some helium  :crackup: .

hugs

Shane

Big Congrats  Daphne,  I think you did a great job you didn't seem to be nervous at all.  I also love your studio it's so bright and must be so much fun to work in.

big hugs

Shane

WOW  ladies thanks so much for posting these pics,  we only get to see birds like this in cages at zoo's or pet stores,  Pinky is very striking would love to have something like that show up in my back yard.

big hugs

Shane

Hi Brenda,

Yes with Canada Post you can insure the package and it doesn't really cost all that much,  we us UPS because we found that the cost was very close to what Canada Post charges and we could easily track it online.  With Canada Post if the parcel is lost then you can make a claim for it, now they stipulate you have to wait a certain time frame before you can make a claim.  We only ever had one thing go missing and that was yrs ago, we did get the money back and then sent the money back to the client.  They were very patient and understood what the problem was, Canada post was also in touch with the client and they had to sign an affadavit to confirm that they had not received the item.  It is very much worthwhile to get the insurance.

big hugs

Shane

I usually sit on the couch with my fabric on my lap and cut out that way,  this way I can still watch TV and I'm comfortable.  It would kill me to sit on the floor and try and cut out a bear, I would not want to do it that way and I would get very tired of it very quickly.

Try sitting in a chair or on the couch and cut out that way, I actually enjoy cutting out    I find it quite relaxing.

big hugs

Shane

       OH boy do I wish they would do that , It struck me funny Shelli when I read your scenerio cause that was the first thing that popped into my mind hmmmmm how would the post office feel if I tried to do that.  You didn't step on my toes Shelli I just found it funny that's all   :hug: .

big hugs

Shane

WOW  Lisa  great job,  love the claws on the bear.  It's a wonderful bear and so much work going into those claws and then attaching them the colouring is great too I love the colour of the shading it's very different and sets the bear off.

Big Hugs

Shane

Well said Jared I agree 100%,  I think you said what myself and other's were trying to say.  Just because you leave feedback right away does not mean your obligation as a seller is over.   

Unlike the scenerio that Shelli brought up about Bloomingdales, just because money has exchanged hands doesn't mean the transaction is complete and I don't think anyone was trying to elude to the fact that this was the case. The transaction is complete when you pay for the item but Bloomingdales will always put your purchase in a box and or a bag for you because that is part of the transacation, and it's not just the sweater you are paying for it's the service that you expect from the department store and part of the service is to package up your purchase.

Although I did receive my money and left feedback I am still going to package up the product and ship it out (pretty hard to just take your bear to the post office without any packaging and get them to post it for you  )   

big hugs

Shane

I always make a pouch when I put weight in my bears tummy, keeps it all in one nice spot and it's not spilling everywhere works like a dream.

hugs

Shane